SUNDAY July 5, 2026
Be Doers of the Word
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
James 1:22
James urged believers to not only be hearers of the Word, but doers. Many people are what we call, “Sunday Christians.” They go to church, week after week, listen to the sermons, but they do not apply what they have heard to their daily lives. Others sit in church pews, week after week, believing they are Christians, but they are not. Why? They are merely religious people who are not born again of God’s Spirit. They just listen to God’s Word, but they do not obey it.
Honestly, if this is you, then you are deceiving yourself. A Christian is to live a life of obedience to God’s Word. If you are living a life of sin, then you are only lying to yourself. You think you are a Christian, but you are not. If you go to church, but there is no real change in your life, do not be deceived by thinking you are going to heaven. Let me tell you, you are not.
Seriously, church attendance does not save you. There needs to be true repentance for your sin before you can be forgiven. Ask yourself, “Am I truly born again?” Jesus said to Nicodemus, a devout religious man: “...unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Nicodemus found what Jesus said hard to understand, but He spoke about a spiritual birth––regeneration.
You see, we are born sinners; our spirit is dead, and we live our lives governed by our fleshly desires. In theology, we are described as a trichotomy––flesh, soul, and spirit. When we are born again, there is a flip-over; our spirit comes to life and we are now––spirit, soul and the flesh. We become governed by the Spirit of God. That means we must die to our fleshly passions: And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:24-25). As believers, our old, sinful nature is put to death, and we choose to obey God’s Word. Our lives must be guided and governed by God’s Spirit.
The Bible recognizes no faith that does not lead to obedience, nor does it recognize any obedience that does not spring from faith. The two are at opposite sides of the same coin.
~A.W. Tozer~
For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!
